How easy is it to become a real estate agent? What are the start up costs?

Question

I am looking to get into the business and I would like to hear only from people who are already in the business and or people who have tried and failed. I think if i became an agent I would be fairly successful but want to know the ins and outs.

Answer 1

First you have to take the required courses (Real Estate Law, Contracts, and Principles). The test can be difficult even if you study. It is usually split into 2 parts 75 Theory questions, and 25 Law questions. You receive a seperate grade for each and need a 70 to pass. I passed the Theory with an 88 the 1st time, and failed the Law by 1 point. I retook it a week later, and got an 80. I know of people who have had to take the test 7 times or more.The fees will be about 400-600 dollars depending on what time of year you start. You have to pay National Association of Realtors dues every year, a monthly office bill, MLS usually quarterly, and a fee to your Local Board, and for your keycard to get in homes.
The thing is to obtain as many listings as you can, and overdeliver to your clients. Working with buyers can be tiring driving them around place to place. Each transaction will come with it's ups and downs (Appraisal comes back too low, client loses their job, client changes their mind about buying or selling, loan does not go through), but you have to remember that you are working for your client's interest and not your own. Don't go spending your commission check until it is in your hand!!! Plus you might have 4 closings 1 month, and 0 for the next 2 months, so budget, budget, budget!
Last but not least, always protect yourself when showing or listing. Get an I.D. copy, license plate # of people you do business with and always let someone know where you are going and how long you expect to be there.
Best wishes & prosperity!!!

Answer 2

You CAN'T go into business as an Agent. You must work for a licensed broker for several years and take college course and then get your Broker License.

You have to think of it as like a Doctor and Nurse. IF the Nurse works for the doctor and gets trained and goes to college and gets an advanced degree after a few years she can take a test and become a Nurse PRactitioner and open up her own shop, but still has to consult with a doctor on each pateint.

The Broker owns the Realeastate office and gets 50% or more of all sales. The Broker must approve changes in percentage rate and other things like that. The Broker is also the one who generally get sued if something goes wrong.

The Agent is licensed to work only under a Broker.

You have to go to an accredited Real Estate Schoo, which costs anywhere from $500 to $1,500, then take a test which costs you $150, although some Real Estate schools include the first test free with the course.

The test is quite difficut and deals with U.S. and state law.

Some people don't pass it the first time. There is a waiting period and second fee to take it again.

After you are an Agent for several years and after you take some additional college course you are qualified to take the exame to be a Licensed Broker.

Once you are a licensed broker you can open your own office.

Real estate agents are COMMISSIONED SALES PEOPLE who generally get 1 1/2% of the selling price for either a listing or sale or both.

You have to show the houses, work the clients, cultivate a neighborhood, pass out your cards and wait for people to call and then grab them up before someone else does. SOmetimes two agents work with the same people and split fees. Sometimes unhappily. The Broker mediates these problems.

Houses are Multiple Listings, although some are exclusive. A Mutiple means you work for Real Estate Network, but the house you are showing is offered by another Firm, local or franchise. They and their broker get 3%, you and your Broker split 3%. Your Broker would like YOU to sell houses that they list so they gets 3%, you get 1 1/2% and the listing agent gets 1 1/2%.

YOu have to learn how the "qualify" the buyer, help them with loan packages. Which means you need to learn quickly about Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, VA loans and other packages available. YOu have to make sure the buyer has enough money for down, escrow or lawyer fees and commssions. And that they qualify for the loan.

Figure it taking 1 year to get your first sale and that culd net your maybe $5,000 or $7,000.

Once you do it a while you start making commssions for listings you did and you have three in escrow, four ready to close and three close calls. Now you are making $50,000 a year.

YOu need a good car, that is comfortable as yo uhave to take them around.

You need to know the area.

Answer 3

You don't need a lot of money. In New York state you have to take a test. Anyone can take the test as long as you are 18 or older. The fee is $15.00 per test. There are 50 mupilal choice questions and you have one hour to complete the test. Then a couple of weeks later they send you a yellow slip saying if you passed or failed. No grade on the test. It's either you passed or failed. You must have 45 hours of a real estate course. You usually take a course through a college. That is resigestered with the state and you receive a Real Estate Salesperson Application signed and stamped with a seal and signiture that you satisfactorily completed a 45 hour salesperson qualifying course in real estate approved by the state. If you pass. You take that letter and your pass slip from the state test to a Broker. If they heir you then you send that information to the state with $50.00 Then they send your licence to the Broker. There are two ways you can be heired by a Broker. You're either heir as an employee or as an independent agent .
So the qualifications for Licensure:
A licensed salesperson must
be 18 or older; never have been convicted of a fekony; be either a citizen or a legal permanent resident of the United States;successfully complete a 45-hour prelicensing course approved by the Department of STate;pass the nstate's licensing wxamination; and have a sponsirubng br9ier brfore obtaining the licence.
There's a lot you need to know and a lot more to this. Get a book and study.

Answer 4

I paid $50-$75 for the class (I don't remember exactly). You have to show up to class and read and study. Then you payto take the state exam. If you get at least 70% you pass. You get more than 1 chance but you pay each time.

I payed a small amount because I agreed to work for the company for a year.

In general, real estate is a very tough business. People are very distrusting of salespeople and real estate is at the top of the list. I've sold cars also and it was much easier than RE. It is a much larger monetary investment for them and they become very emotional.

You have to sell at LEAST 5 mill a year to make a decent wage, so pick a market with higher priced homes if you can. You can work your butt off for months before you see any money.

Good luck to you. Give it a shot. If you don't like it , you will come out with some added knowledge and experience and that's always a good thing!!

Answer 5

I am an administrative assistant for a Real Estate Agent and I too am planning on becoming licensed. Getting into the business is not hard but finding leads, buyers, and sellers can be complicated. You must have a high school diploma or GED. Here in Illinois you can become licensed by taking a 45 hour course which is generally alot about math, statistics, and neighborhood appreciation. If you want to become an actual broker than you need like 65 hours of courses. Each state is different but you must be licensed in the each state that you sell or buy in. The hardest part is finding clients. It's like a sales job. They are many companies that offer software that allows agents to obtain leads but of course it is expensive. It is expensive and you have to pay for books. It depends on whether you become licensed with an actual broker or through a college. Hope this helps and I wish you luck.

Answer 6

Hello, Princess.

I only know about Illinois, since I have been both an attorney, and a real estate agent.

Actually, in Illinois, there are TWO licenses--Agent,or Broker.

I took the Broker's exam, and passed, but it was as hard, or harder, than passing the Bar Exam..

Funny, but merely to list and sell homes, you have to know so much about contracts, discrimination laws, etc.

To actually work in a Real estate Office, which I did for 6 months, you spend a lot of time idle, wating for a call or a walk-in.

Meanwhile, you do "cold calls", to try to conver "Fisbos" (for sale by owner) into clients..

You need a big motor vehicle, to drive and show potential buyers around in. It used to be a big Cadillac or a Lincoln, but nowadays, a large SUV etc., would do.

Point is, a couple might show up with 4 children, and you have to be able to drive them ALL around, from house to house, in.

You spend about 12 hours /day in the office. Waiting,and making calls.

On weekends, you host "Open houses", and guide people through the hous(es)

A smattering of knowledge about architecture, home styles, etc., is helpful.

You need to know when some house is "tudor", or "Tri-Level", or "bungalow", etc.

If you know a little about plumbing and the mechanics of how the electrical systems, etc., work, so much the better.

You NEED to have a year or so worth of income money, saved, because it takes that long, before your listings and sales efforts result in your commission--which might be a few ( say 5-10 thousand dollars)--at Closing.

Not an easy job, but you DO get to meet and talk to a lot of interesting people.

Hope this helps. In my 6 months, I had to quit, and the one listing I got, turned over to the agency, so I wasted 6 months, without pay, etc.

You NEED what-is-called a "Sales Personality".

Another thing,is that the Computer World might be making that job obsolete.

If a person can scan a house on the PC, what do they need an agent for?

Good luck, but I'd look for another way to use your talents.

JIm

Answer 7

You might try this, too. On your browser search bar, for your area, type in real estate agent education or go to a popular real estate agency website. You can find various costs and course material to choose from. I know family members who are agents and in the sales business, and like some of your other answerer's have said, it is not very lucrative at first. If you really want to succeed and know that you are a self-motivated person, have the means to endure the "lean" period - go ahead and invest the time and money. Some said the test was easy, others hard. Good luck!

Answer 8

1 real estate can be very lucrative
i read a lot of the posts here and i dont quite agree with all of them.I'm 28 years old and have been doing real estate since i was 22. I never had a year in which my income was less then 6 figures..i also didnt spend much money to create my buisness.you can about it two ways a. you can work in a n office like remax or kellerwilliams or c21 or sucess and make top dollar commissions but you'll stress your self out with all the office fees and rent and photocopying or you can go to some where like i worked at a reputable mom and pop shop take less and all your expenses are covered..the good thing about it is that all my leads came in through them all i had to worry about was my 400 ayear mls fees and gas for my car! after a couple of years i left and went to keller williams for the almighty dollar and it was just aggravating with everything they want you to pay for...know i own my own company and i run a mom and pop shp type of company were there are no fees for anything!

Answer 9

I don't think that there is any cost required to become real estate agent.
It's just depends on your contacts with different people.
It's preferrable that you have your own small place where customers can come have a chat with you.
You must be very professinal and polite in speaking.
You must convince person both ways and both customers in that sense buyer and seller both on the prices.
You may even have spend a bit on marketing n advertisment making people know that u have started this new business of real estate agent.

That all..

Its easy being real estate agent but u must be polite n have good contacts with persons n give ur every client a personal touch.

Answer 10

Each state's licensing requirements vary- so you will need to check out the licensing of each state to find out costs.

If you are really serious about making this a full time career- you will not want to have another job- that will hold you back. You will want to have a minimum of three months worth of liivng expenses in the bank. Even if you start getting transactions right away, it can a month or so for the transaction to close.

I suggest startin on a team as a buyers agent. Interview with different agents and find someone who shares similar values and ethics with you. It is extremly difficult to do well with someone who has different morals and business ethics than you do. A buyers agent is like an apprentiship- only in this situation you actually get paid for your work. As a buyers agent you will not have the same freedom that you do as a full agent- but you get the benefit of their experience- you also get a help generating leads. Most agents who have teams also have assistants who do all the paperwork- you will want an assistant but won't be able to afford one for a while- so this way you will get an assistant. A team gives you more of the hands on training. You have someone to go to to bounce ideas off of. Teams are also a nice scenario for when you decide to go on vacation- you can leave your current business with the team who your clients may be familiar with and not worry about the transactions when you are gone. You also don't have all of the overhead that you would normally- most teams I am aware of- the team leader bears the expense of things like signs, office spce and computers in the office. Some will split the expenses of dues and things like that with you. Each team works a little diffrently and it is up to each individual team leader as to commision splits, expenses and how leads are handled. There are downfalls to this type of situation, but for the most part I think it is a great way to get into the business and gain the experience. Most team members are parts of the team for 2-3 years and then go out on their own.

I don't recommend spending lots of money on the big real estate gurus ie.. Mike Ferry, Brian Buffini etc.. they generally have some great ideas and can get you pumped up- but I have found that they are more into High pressure sales- if that is your thing than they will be great. I have taken some of what they say and implemented it, but for the most part, I have been disappointed with much of their advice- a lot of times it is all centered around the agent and not focused on customer service. You want people to refer their friends and to come back everytime the buy or sell a home and you won't get that with out superior customer service. The other agents in your office are usually a great resouce and most are willing to give you advice on how to handle things.

I am probably just rambling now- But my main suggestion is find a good team to be on for at least the first several years.